The Photo Slide

(winter/2011, 6:30 a.m.) I saw her most mornings when I rushed to catch the bus to work. She appeared to be in her late 30’s, early 40’s. Most of the time I would see her joyously swinging, kicking her feet and laughing with just as much joy. When the sun was up in summer I could see her face, childlike. I figured she had an intellectual disability and whoever was her caretaker allowed her this time alone on the swing in the playground near our house. On this morning, a chilly dark damp winter morning, she sat staring at the ground. I wondered about her this morning. Then as my bus came I heard her laughter and looked at the playground to see her swinging high against the still dark dawn. It’s why I call this photo ‘Womanchild On A Swing’.

​I ran across this skating party in Central Park a few weeks ago and couldn't help but wonder how many of these folks know that this was part of Seneca Village, a village of black africans who owned part of the land that is now Central Park. The spirit of Seneca Village definitely lives on!

​When we think of royal dynasties in history, often overlooked is the Keita Dynasty. Keita was the last name of the powerful family that ruled the Mali Empire of West Africa from 1230 to 1610. The story of the Keita's include political intrigue, explorations of the Atlantic Ocean (before Columbus), and of great wealth. The most notable figures of the Keita Dynasty were Sundiata Keita, Abubakari Keita II and Musa Keita.

​Sundiata Keita (who was known as ‘The Lion King of Mali’— yes, there was a real ‘Lion King’) founded the Mali Empire in 1230 and became its first mansa (king). The tale of Sundiata Keita’s rise to power is a story of war and political intrigue as recounted in the powerful, ‘The Epic of Sundiata’, a story that has been passed down in Mali oral history.

The second prominent figure in the Keita Dynasty was Abu Bakari II who is known as ‘The Voyager King’ because of his intense interest in exploring the Atlantic Ocean. This interest led him to send fleets of ships from the Mali Empire to explore the Atlantic. Eventually, in the year 1311 (almost 200 years before Columbus), Abu Bakari II himself, commanded a fleet of ships and set sail himself to explore the Atlantic Ocean. He knew there was a chance he might not return so he relinquished the throne to his brother, Musa.

The third prominent figure in the Keita Dynasty was Musa Keita. Having inherited the throne from his brother, Abu Bakari II when Abu Bakari II set sail to explore the Atlantic Ocean in 1311, Musa Keita became known for his wealth and patronage to the arts and culture. Even today, if searched on the internet for ‘the wealthiest person in history’, Musa Keita’s name still appears (as ‘Mansa Musa’). It’s estimated that Musa Keita’s wealth today would amount to a net worth of $400 billion. The reason for much of the wealth of the Keita’s was their control of the exchange of the natural resources of Africa during that period, which included the gold that European and Asian empires needed, as well as other resources. There was a vibrant exchange of goods between Africa and Europe during this period that preceded the rush towards black slavery as an industry. Musa Keita’s most memorable mention in history is his pilgrimage to Mecca between 1324 — 1325, and the wealth he distributed along the way. The Keita Dynasty, once powerful, but often overlooked in history.

How ironic that President Trump espouses the same rhetoric of a political party that sought to block his ancestors from immigrating to the U.S. during the 19th Century. The party was called ‘The Know-Nothing Party’ and officially changed it’s name to the American Party during the 19th Century. The Know-Nothing Party was against the immigration of Germans (Trump's father) and Irish (Trump's mother) and Catholics in general from coming into the U.S. The party felt the immigrants would ruin the ‘American way’ (which was seen as mostly Protestant) and take jobs away from Americans (i.e. white Protestants). Also, the Irish were seen as low on the totem pole amongst white people then. How ironic that President Trump is embracing a similar sentiment toward particular classes of immigrants (this time in the name of national safety) — or maybe it’s not a case of irony at all, but simply the lesson he has learned from the past. (above is a photo of a member of the then ‘Know-Nothing Party’).

​I see these scenes so much around NYC. Black men with their kids. I used to carry my daughter around on my chest-- this was back in the '70's. Just hangin' out with my little girl in her carrier on my chest (i didn't trust having her on my back and out of my sight). The good rap about these men is usually overlooked for the sake of embracing stereotype. (photos and video courtesy of Ocean Morisset).

While working on my next novel I recalled an actual incident: my father going into a rage against a carnival ride operator because the guy removed my siblings and me, and all of the other 'colored' children from the carousel (this was around 1959, 1960). It appeared there were white kids who wanted to ride at the same time that some of we 'colored' kids had gotten on... so the guy responded the way he was conditioned-- the black kids had to get off of the ride. Well, my father went off. Needless to say, the police came and threatened to arrest him for disorderly conduct. He went off on them as well, then he corralled my siblings and me and left the carnival. My father had seen lynchings of black people while growing up and had seen the horrors of WWII. Enough was enough. He had had enough of inhumanity. btw, yes, I do use that scene in the novel.

Ella is a woman haunted by an act she committed at the age of fourteen in an attempt to hold onto the young man who was the father of her child. However, what she considered to be a small act spirals out of control and leads to a tragic event that haunts Ella into her middle years and affects the life of her son, Danny-- now an adult and the man she eventually marries, Milton Pruitt, a prominent minister haunted by his own past. ‘Ella Pruitt’ is a story about memory, guilt and reckoning.'Ella Pruitt’ was judged to be one of the best works of fiction of 2016 by The Phillis Wheatley Book Awards. (Available at Amazon; Barnes and Noble; and All Bookstores and Booksellers)Excerpts

I came to this distant land, and with you I helped clear this land and build upon this land. But unlike you laws forbidding me to own that land were immediately set in place. Two hundred and fifty years or so later you will invite your brethren, the 'huddled masses', to come en masse from Europe to these lands that I helped build and you would appoint them master over me. ... But I pushed back, and will continue to push back. And so it goes... 100 years later you will tell me I am equal, yet by then you will own all of the land and you will keep unspoken rules in place to ensure your dominion over me. ... But I push back. I will always push back. And so it goes... (The first Africans in New York City, 1626) ~ That's the thought I have whenever I visit the African Burial Grounds here in NYC, where black Africans buried their families from the 1600's to the 1700's. If you ever get the chance, visit this historical site right in the center of NYC.https://www.nps.gov/afbg/index.htm

Time hasn't done much to dim this 1956 photo by Gordon Parks, a photo that speaks of the sense of place attributed to black people in American society. Even now in 2013 the sense of 'colored people being in their place' continues. The reaction of some to Trayvon Martin, a black boy who was 'out of his place' by walking through the neighborhood in which he was held suspect because of the color of his skin, and the reaction of some to President Obama, a black man in the White House-- a black person 'out of his place'-- are examples of the discomfort that arises when 'colored folks are in a place where they don't belong'. It's something that happens every day across the U.S.

Some are writing that Jason Collins is the first openly gay player on a major U.S. sports team. What about Glenn Burke who played as an openly gay player in the 1970's? (Posted at http://www.dougcooperspencer.com/black-lgbtq-people-in-history.html) Glenn Burke (1952-1995) was a Major League Baseball player for the L.A. Dodgers and the Oakland A’s from 1976 to 1979. He was the first major league baseball player to play while being out of the closet. (“They can’t ever say now that a gay man can’t play in the majors, because I’m a gay man and I made it”—Glen Burke).

A woman buried in the parking lot of a movie theater. Here's the story as it's been told: "When Mary Ellis died in 1828, her family buried her in a peaceful patch of woods near a bend in the Raritan River. She’s still there, but the trees are long gone—her body now rests in the middle of a movieplex parking lot.

In the 1790s, Mary moved to New Brunswick, New Jersey to live with her sister. There, she fell in love with a local sea captain (who is rumored to have also been a Revolutionary War officer). The couple courted, schmoozed, and made plans for the future. But one day, duty called. The captain had to set sail, and he cruised down the Raritan River to New York Harbor. Before leaving, he gave Mary his trusty horse and promised to return. So Mary waited.

As local legend goes, Mary rode that horse to the riverbank every day, waiting to embrace her sweetheart when he came ashore. But by 1813, he still hadn’t returned. Mary didn’t give up. She bought farmland along the Raritan and kept waiting. In 1828, Mary—now a spinster—died alone and her family buried her near the river.

Fast forward 140 years. It was the 1960s, and plans had been made to build a discount store on what was once Mary’s property. The woods were cleared and the ground was graded to make room for a parking lot. Mary’s grave was smack in the middle, her headstone thankfully untouched by the road roller. Over the years, Mary’s resting place appeared to rise from the pavement. The parking lot was graded lower and lower, leaving her headstone looming eight feet over a sea of blacktop. Today, the parking lot serves an 18-theater movieplex.

Fun fact! Mary’s sea yarn may have inspired the 1972 pop hit “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl).” The lyrics tell the story of a girl who falls in love with a sailor. Her love, though, goes unrequited—the ocean is the seaman’s true love. The band, Looking Glass, started up at Rutgers’s New Brunswick campus and probably knew Mary’s tale." (Source: Mentalfloss.com)

Tibetan Monks in prayer.

(I posted this on my FB wall, summer of 2013) Teen Saves Girl from Kidnapping: 15 year old Temar Boggs intervenes with a kidnapper as the kidnapper was trying to escape with the little girl. Oh the interesting stories of being black, male and adolescent in America. CONGRATULATIONS TEMAR BOGGS! (see the video: http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/15/justice/pennsylvania-teen-heroes/index.html)

As teens, Otis and Terrell were boyfriends. But their relationship was torn apart by Terrell's father and his pastor causing a tragic outcome. Now, as they near their fortieth birthdays, both Otis and Terrell seek to confront the pains and truths that have shaped their journeys: Otis returns home, having endured years of hardship in search of the peace that has eluded him for so long. During his stay he finds he must confront family members and others who had turned their backs on him, and finally the minister who brought about his downfall. Then there is Terrell who finds that in spite of the 'perfect life' he chose to live: his marriage to Karen and his dedication to his two kids, there can be no peace without reconciling the differences that determines his sexual identity. 'This Place of Men is the first book in the 'This Place of Men Trilogy’. (Available at Amazon; Barnes and Noble; and All Bookstores and Booksellers) Excerpts

'Beware of your saints, they just might be monsters.' That's what I thought when I saw this photo of Eddie Long.

Honor. In a time when honor is so often misplaced, this photo, this act, brings it back to its rightful place:In this photo from China, the body on the gurney in the middle of the picture is 11 year old Liang Yaoyi.

Liang wanted to be a doctor when he grew up. Unfortunately that dream will never come true.He died from a brain tumor.

He told his parents before he died, if he didn’t survive, he wanted to donate his organs so that others could live.

According to the news story he said: "There are many people doing great things in the world. They are great, and I want to be a great kid too."

As Liang's body was being wheeled into surgery to remove his organs, the doctors all bowed and formed a sort of honor guard to show their respect.

The road to the White House

That night! I never thought so many emotions would come over me, but I found myself crying uncontrollably as I thought of my parents and all they had been through and of the many black people who passed before.

"Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix."

That statement was part of the decision handed down by the Virginia State Supreme Court in 1958 regarding interracial marriage and miscegenation. In the name of God and the courts, it was the ruling that sentenced Mildred Jeter Loving, a black woman, and her husband, Richard Loving, a white man to one year in jail for a marriage that was not only illegal but immoral as well. So declared, the opinion was not just that of the court, but it was viewed as God’s edict as well. Today the fight is over same-sex marriage (and equal rights of same-sex, LGBTQ persons), and again some people insist that their particular view of their particular god should usurp Constitutional law.

So far, the Kiffian culture is one of the oldest cultures found in Africa. The Kiffians are said to have lived some 3,000 years before the rise of Egyptian civilization (approximately 10,000 to 8,000 years ago). The Kiffians, by their remains, appears to have been very tall and very muscular, yet their remains show them to have most likely have been a peaceful people who mainly herded cattle and lived off the catch of the surrounding waters in the Niger area of Africa (the Sahara wasn't a desert then). After the Kiffian culture declined they were replaced by another group, the Tenerians, both preceding the rise of Egyptian civilization. A really neat National Geographic/PBS documentary on the finds of these peoples here: http://www.pbs.org/program/skeletons-sahara/

​A marriage ends after the husband comes out of the closet. Now the 'ex-couple' must struggle with the love and respect they once had for each other as well as with their new identities: she, as a single woman scorned by her gay husband and he, as a man who has come to identify himself as gay... And what about their children? 'People Like Us' is the second book in the 'This Place of Men Trilogy’.(Available at: Amazon;Barnes and Noble; and All Bookstores and Booksellers) Excerpts

Chipping away at inequality. A federal judge in Cincinnati ordered Ohio authorities to recognize gay marriages on death certificates. Another challenge to Ohio's ban on same-sex unions. When I was growing up, the issue was marriage between races. And even then religion was used as 'reasoning' to practice inequality. (prev. photo)

Season 2 starts Feb. 14, 2014! Greg & I can hardly wait!

I've always loved this photo taken by photographer Dennis Stock of the actor James Dean. The mood of the photograph speaks so much to me. I love taking long walks on overcast, cold days. I find I can reflect more when I take walks on days like this. Yes, even if there is a little rain!

Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. If you could pile all HeLa cells ever grown onto a scale, they’d weigh more than 50 million metric tons—as much as a hundred Empire State Buildings. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. ...Yet for many years Henrietta Lacks remained virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave... Her story is told in the book 'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks'.

The Potala Palace in Lhasa. A place I know hubby and I would love to visit!

A black male couple from the early 20th Century. The photo is from the Trent Kelley photo collection of black male couples.

A black male couple today.

Madiba, your light will never dim. In memory of Nelson Mandela (1918-2013).

Parents with unborn child who will be born with two faces. The parents refuse to abort the pregnancy. The intersection of personal morals, social welfare and love (love of the child or love of one's own moral objective?) all intersect here. So much to consider. The couple, Renee and Simon Howie live in Sydney Australia.

A gay man discovers he has a son from a one night affair. Now his son, a young man in his twenties, has come to live with him. Everything is fine until the father realizes his son hustles his body to make money on the side. It's a trade the father is familiar with because he once lived that same life and knows the dangers involved.

​The father's son, however, feels he has been blessed with great sexual prowess. He has used his 'gift' to dominate both men and women to get what he wants. But there is one thing he can't get from sex, and that is peace of mind from the darkness that haunts him, the same darkness that haunted, and later destroyed his mother.Now the father must fight to save his son from a life in the streets and from the darkness that haunts his son. 'Leaving Gomorrah' is the final book in the 'This Place of Men Trilogy'.

Artifact from the Mohenjo Daro Civilization. The Mohenjo Daro/Harappa Civilization was in what is now modern day Pakistan. Notice the African influence? It was one of the earlier civilazations in the Indus Valley pre-dating the people (i.e. Aryan peoples) we now see in modern India and Pakistan.

Yoko Ono keeps the glasses her husband, the late musician/songwriter John Lennon was wearing the day he was assassinated in 1980.

Greg Cooper Spencer was commissioned to photograph a family in which the mother was expecting another child. This is one of my favorite photos from that shoot. Greg said the little boy was soooo ready to be done with the photo shoot.

Part of the Nag Hamadi scrolls. It seems not all early Christians agreed on the life of Jesus and especially, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The year 1311 saw explorer/emperor Abu Bakari II set sail with a fleet of ships from the West African kingdom of Mali to explore the Atlantic Ocean. There is discussion over whether or not some of his fleet made it to the Americas since only one ship returned. What is more important is the constant understanding we have of sub-Saharan/Black Africa and it's role in world history. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1068950.stm

I'm not surprised. The focus on poverty has been shifted away from the underclass to the middle-class. There's another conversation going on with this new movement to confront poverty, and that conversation has to do with the old issues of class, race and culture. Dealing with middle-class people is easier than dealing with people that this nation and many other societies despise (the underclass). The images we have come to associate with middle-class are different than the ones we have been fed to believe of the underclass. It's an issue that has to be dealt with on a deeper level than just food banks.

In Senegal, traditional wrestling known as 'laamb' is the favored sport over all other sports. Here, a laamb wrestler is preparing himself spiritually with a water ritual before his fight. I've always been a fan of traditional wrestling and enjoyed going a few rounds when I was younger.

A magnificent photo of a group of young laamb wrestlers taken by photographer, Denise Rouvray.

Senegalese laamb wrestlers during a bout.

Senegalese laamb wrestler. Now that laamb has gained much commercial appeal some say the sport has lost some of its tradition and has gotten a bit out of hand. They say now some of the laamb wrestlers are even brought to NYC to train and are supported by wealthy western investors.

A Letter to a Friend is written in epistolary form. It's a letter written in 1999 by Doug Cooper to his then boyfriend, Greg Spencer, a year into their relationship. What began as a personal letter to Greg to prepare him for living as an openly gay man eventually became a manifesto against homophobia and a declaration of liberation from homophobia. Giving thought to homophobic tropes and devices such as the idea of God's condemnation of homosexuality, and the view that declares homosexuality as unnatural, 'A Letter to a Friend' challenges those worn ways of thinking with fresh ideas. 'A Letter to a Friend' offers words and thoughts for anyone who wishes to break the bonds of homophobia, be they same-sex loving, or those who simply are brave enough to take a fresh look at old ideas. 'A Letter to a Friend' implores all of us to take another look at ways of thinking that have held many captive to oppression and bigotry and to move to a spirit that seeks to realize a self-actualized spirit anchored in love.(Available at Amazon , Barnes and Noble , and All Bookstores) Excerpts

"As a sixth generation Idahoan, the landscape of the West influences my work, it’s part of my personal and cultural history, it is the geography of my genes. I grew up in two very distinct areas of Idaho: the scenic area of Stanley Basin—which sits at the base of the Sawtooth Mountain Range—and the town of Idaho Falls—a community that revolves around agriculture, religion and nuclear power. Living in these two regions gave me the perspective to appreciate the delicate balance of the scenic and the mundane and recognize how they overlap one another. I am exploring in this work the way communities and individuals stake claims on the picturesque landscape and place it within the conventional structures of the community. By making a photograph of these claimed territories, I am staking my own claim to my heritage, the landscape. The manner in which we depict this scenery has become the identity and perception of the American West, symbolized by wilderness, mountain peaks, crystal clear rivers, and big game animals. This is the mythology of the West."

I took a break from work and sat outside on this wall. I noticed the cigarette butts that were discarded along the wall. They are mostly the same brand and many of them have the same color of lipstick on them. Who is this woman? What's on her mind? Is she ok? Is it even a woman? There are so many stories to be told in life.

I was wondering if they'd ever make a movie of the Marvel Comic superhero, 'The Black Panther'. Now it's in the works. Wonder who will play him? They'd have to match him with Halle Berry because she plays Storm, his wife. I know... Idris Elba! Did you see his body in the movie, 'Prometheus' (a film Greg and I loved). Yeah, I say Idris Elba should play 'The Black Panther'.

"How To Make It In America". Greg and I really liked this show. I wish HBO would bring it back.

Jewel's Catch-One Night Club, L.A. Probably the oldest black-owned LGBTQ club in the U.S. (if not the world?). Open since 1972 and still going. A lot of memories dancing there many, many decades ago.

Remember the lie about soldier Jessica Lynch (on left) and how she bravely fought in the (ill-advised) invasion of Iraq? (2003) As we learned later on, according to Ms. Lynch, it was all a lie. The truth was it was Soshana Johnson (seated to the right of Ms. Lynch) who went out fighting before they were captured. Later Ms. Johnson was harassed so badly by the military that she left the military. Ms. Lynch was treated as a national hero with a book written about her and a movie based on her capture... NOT SO FOR FOR SOSHANA JOHNSON. At least we can thank Jessica Lynch for coming forth with the truth (though she still made a bundle from her story)... Here's a photo of the two ladies, guess which one was treated as a hero and which one, being the true hero of the event, was almost overlooked, and then mistreated by the military?

The USS Mt. Whitney. I was stationed on that ship when I was in the military. Oh the stories I could tell! And I just might.

Greg shot this photo of me 'struggling' to tie my shoe! Ok, it wasn't that much of a struggle, but certainly not as easy as when I was younger.

"I came out in the early 1970's. I know I had to constantly fight white gays who almost demanded I give up my heritage, become inauthentic, in order to work in the gay rights movement. I saw many black gays who did just that, but there were many of us who knew we loved our racial/cultural heritage AND could fight the good fight for gay rights." (From a conversation I had with FB friends regarding race and the gay rights movement)

Black cowboys at a black rodeo (baby, you should see some of the black cowboys... HOT!)

I found this photo on Tumblr. Cabrini Green, to some, notorious while to others 'home'. I can recall passing by this project and hearing the 'pop' of gunfire while hanging out in Chicago back in the day. Cabrini Green has since been demolished.

'Woman Who Donated Kidney Now Wants It Back' now that the husband has recovered and then walked out on her. Here's the thing: Lady, you no longer own that kidney. You signed it away. Now, word of advice: replace the kidney you chose to give in the spirit of Love with which you gave it (if, indeed it was given out of love and not possession-- a need to hold onto your husband). Then you can move on.

While in NYC I saw two Chinese guys arguing. I couldn't understand their spoken language, but I think I recognize the international language of a lover's quarrel.

'Dakan' is one of my favorite films. Made in 1997, by director Mohamed Camara, Dakan is considered the first African film that tells the story of gay love. I must have watched this movie at least 5 times.

A pivotal scene in my novel, 'This Place of Men' takes place in this park overlooking Cincinnati. Devou Park.

Cincinnati skyline at night.

For the black and Hispanic (mostly Puerto Rican) LGBTQ communities the house ball scene has been around for many, many decades (Madonna even 'borrowed' from the house ball scene when she recorded her song 'Vogue'-- after attending a few shows-- based on the dance of the house ball scene and films have been made about the ball scene. Is Gerard H Gaskin's book, 'Legendary: Inside The House Ballroom Scene' the first book dedicated to the house ball scene?

And, then there's this: For all of you 'crafty' folks who own cats: A book on 'Crafting With Cat Hair'. Yep, that's right. Use your cat's hair to make... things...

The sound of cascading water. It gets to me every time. Calming. Meditative. This is a favorite sitting spot of mine.

I took this photo while walking around the Over-The-Rhine (OTR) neighborhood in Cincinnati. I don't know exactly what the graffiti on the wall means, but I found its message of survival and advance somewhat ironic that it's half hidden behind a mound of sand and dirt that's being used in the refurbishing of OTR. From the late 1960's to about 4 years ago, the OTR neighborhood, a beautiful neighborhood of 19th century town houses and properties (some close to 200 years old), was the dumping ground for the city's 'undesirables'. It was the place where the region banished people whom society didn't want to see: economically disenfranchised peoples and those with intellectual, emotional and even physical challenges were steered there and kept there with an abundance of social welfare programs to keep them afloat. Now it's being reclaimed by middle and upper middle-class folks. The 'undesirables' are now being 'relocated'. That's why this photo has meaning to me.

Friends and me at The Fire & Ink Cotillion in Austin, 2009. I really hope there's another Fire & Ink event. It was off the hook. A gathering of black LGBTQ writers, artists, scholars and activists all under one roof for the weekend, exchanging ideas and learning from one another. It was a great time.

A man returns home from prison to find the son he left behind is transgender. 'Gun Hill Road', a fantastic film by young black director/writer Rashad Ernesto Green is a powerful, emotional movie that lets the viewer feel both sides of the challenges experienced with transgender life-- the transgendered person and the non-transgendered person, both of whom must live together in the larger world. A great film, a storyline that is well crafted and, given the histories of the characters in the story, different; powerful acting, and a great job for a young director and writer who was still in film school when he wrote and directed the film. The stars are: Esai Morales, Judy Reyes and Harmony Santana. One of me and Greg's favs!

Sundiata Keita, The Lion King of Mali and the ‘Epic of Sundiata’, A 13th Century West African Story of Intrigue, Politics and Heroic Exploits

Sundiata Keita (known as ‘The Lion King of Mali’) was the founder of the Mali Empire. The years of his birth and death are given as c. 1210 – c. 1255. Sundiata Keita’s birthplace was Nagaba State (in present-day Mali) West Africa. His birth name was Mari Diata, but he changed his name to Sundiata Keita once he ascended the throne.

An ethnic Malinké (also known as Mandinka or Mandingo in the Western tongue), Mari Diata was the son of Nare Maghan, ruler of the small state of Kangaba in present-day Mali, West Africa. When Mari was a young man, Sumanguru Kante, king of the nearby Soso Empire, killed Nare and annexed Kangaba.

From around 1230 to 1234, Mari Diata united the chiefs of various Malinké clans. He led them to war and defeated the Soso around 1235. This marked the decline of the Soso Empire. Mari Diata then took the name “Sundiata” meaning “lion prince.” “Keita” is the name of his dynasty. With his capital at Niani, Sundiata consolidated his power over the Malinké and forged the Mali Empire. The empire grew rich from the gold mines of what is today Ghana and through control of the lucrative trade routes linking West Africa's Atlantic coast with the Arab trading posts in the Sahara.

The life of Sundiata Keita is the subject of the ‘Epic of Sundiata’. The epic of Sundiata, the Lion King of Mali was first told by griots during Sundiata’s reign during the middle of the 13th Century and has been told by many since then. It’s a story worthy of being put to film.

Here is the plot to real- life story, the ‘Epic of Sundiata’:

In the "Epic of Sundiata" (also spelled Son-Jara or Sundjata) Naré Maghann Konaté (also called Maghan Kon Fatta or Maghan the Handsome) was a Mandinka king who one day received a divine hunter at his court. The hunter predicted that if Konaté married an ugly woman, she would give him a son who would one day be a mighty king. Naré Maghann Konaté was already married to Sassouma Bereté and had a son by her, Dankaran Toumani Keïta.

However, when two Traoré hunters from the Do kingdom presented him an ugly, hunchbacked woman named Sogolon, he remembered the prophecy and married her. She soon gave birth to a son, Sundiata Keita, who was unable to walk throughout his childhood. Sassouma was jealous of the child and mother and would make fun of Sundiata for his inability to walk and the ugliness he inherited from his mother. Despite his physical weakness, the king still granted Sundiata his own griot at young age; this was in order to have them grow together and provide constant consultation as was custom.

With the death of Naré Maghann Konaté (c. 1224), his first son, Dankaran Tuman, assumed the throne despite Konaté's wishes that the prophecy be respected. Sundiata and his mother, who now had given birth to two daughters and adopted a second son from Konaté's third wife Namandjé, suffered the scorn of the new king and his mother. After an insult against Sogolon, Sundiata requested an iron rod from the blacksmith Nounfari, which broke when he tried to use it in order to pull himself upright and walk. Only when he used a branch of S'ra (African baobab or Adansonian tree) was he able to walk. In one version of the epic, Sundiata is able to walk after his father dies and his mother orders him to do so. He then becomes a great hunter. Nonetheless, the hatred of Sassouma Bereté and Dankaran Toumani Keita soon drove Sundiata, his mother, and his two sisters into exile in the Mema kingdom. In one version of the epic, Sundiata and his mother are not exiled. Sogolon feels that she and her son are in danger because of Sassouma's jealousy and left to keep them safe. Neighboring kingdoms are unwilling to harbor Sundiata and Sogolon in fear of what Sassouma and her son would do, but the Mema people take them in.

While living in the Mema kingdom, Sundiata began to grow "as strong as a lion", and he fought with the greatest general of the Mema people, Moussa Tounkara. Sundiata became such a great warrior to the degree that he was made heir to the Mema throne. However, Sogolon encouraged him to "fulfill his destiny" and return to Mali to become king.

Meanwhile, Soumaoro Kanté, cruel sorcerer king of Sosso, attacked the Mandinka kingdom, causing Dankaran Toumani Keita to take flight in fear. Before reaching Mali, Soumaoro had conquered nine kingdoms in the Ghana Empire. He was a notoriously cruel leader. The oppressed Mandinka people then sent for the exiled Sundiata. Forging a coalition of neighboring small kingdoms, Sundiata waged a war against the Sosso, finally Sundiata was later crowned with the title "Mansa," or "king of kings", as the first ruler of the Mali Empire. He soon set about organizing the nucleus of the empire, presenting the Gbara of nobles and notables at his coronation with an oral constitution known as the Kouroukan Fouga. His model for government would guide the empire into greatness.

A poignant, wonderful photo by Ocean Morisset, with the caption:"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."--Maya Angelou.Photo Copyright Ocean Morisset.http://oceanmorisset.com/

(God and Conscience) In declaring interracial marriage illegal it was stated by a court in 1958:""Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix."... Now using God and religious conscience is once again being used in sanctioning discrimination against LGBTQ persons. The Kansas bill states: “if it would be contrary to the sincerely held religious beliefs of the individual or religious entity…no individual or religious entity shall be required by any governmental entity to…[p]rovide any services, accommodations, advantages, facilities, goods, or privileges; provide counseling, adoption, foster care and other social services; or provide employment or employment benefits, related to, or related to the celebration of, any marriage, domestic partnership, civil union or similar arrangement; solemnize any marriage, domestic partnership, civil union or similar arrangement; or treat any marriage, domestic partnership, civil union or similar arrangement as valid.”

I didn't know that Vee Jay records, a black record company, was the first U.S. company to distribute the early Beatles recordings back in the early 1960's. It makes sense since many of the early Beatles tunes were covers of black music and Vee Jay wanted to expand into the white demographic (i.e. Motown). I remember Vee Jay Records. btw, Vee Jay records also distributed the recordings of another popular white music group, The Four Seasons.

I received a comment from someone about the shooting of a young black man by a white man who felt his life might be in danger (though there was no evidence that his life was in danger): “This makes no sense to me. What is there to debate. If you are scared, you stay in your car, roll up the windows and leave as soon as you can.”

My response to him was: “Black skin has always been problematic and subject to debate in this country (and others, as well).”

Our TV was similar to this one when I was a boy. Memories... I think it took 12 people to turn that channel knob!

Littering Mt. Everest (Photo above and next two below): The article talks about it. "Decades of mountaineering have taken a toll on the peak, which is strewn with rubbish from past expeditions, including oxygen cylinders, human waste and even climbers' bodies, which do not decompose in the extreme cold... The government has decided, in order to clean up Mount Everest, each member of an expedition must bring back at least 8kg of garbage, apart from their own trash." The article: The Guardian

A Texas woman apparently contracted HIV through sexual contact with another woman, the Centers for Disease Control reported Thursday, a rare female-to-female transmission of the virus.

Testing confirmed the 46-year-old woman with newly diagnosed HIV "had a virus virtually identical to that of her female partner, who was diagnosed previously with HIV and who had stopped receiving antiretroviral treatment in 2010," according to the CDC's Weekly Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Past confirmation of such transmission "has been difficult because other risk factors almost always are present or cannot be ruled out," the report said. "In this case, other risk factors for HIV transmission were not reported by the newly infected woman, and the viruses infecting the two women were virtually identical."

The CDC said it was contacted by the Houston Department of Health about the case in August 2012.

The woman newly diagnosed with HIV did not report any other risk factors, such as injection drug use, tattooing, transfusions or transplants, officials said. She supplemented her income by selling plasma, and tested negative for HIV in March 2012.

Ten days after donating plasma, however, in April 2012, she went to an emergency room complaining of a sore throat, fever, vomiting and decreased appetite, among other symptoms. She again tested negative for HIV.

However, she tested positive for HIV when attempting to sell plasma 18 days later, and further testing confirmed the diagnosis.

The woman is believed to have been infected by her 43-year-old sexual partner, the CDC said. She told officials the woman was her only sexual partner during the six months before she tested positive.

The couple said they routinely had unprotected sexual contact and shared sex toys between them. At times, the contact was "rough to the point of inducing bleeding in either woman," according to the CDC. The women said some of the unprotected sexual contact occurred during menstruation.

Commonly, HIV infections in women who have sex with women are traced to risk behaviors such as intravenous drug use or heterosexual sex, the CDC said. (Source: CNN)

National Geographic says in spite of the much publicized oil spills from rigs, pipelines, etc., most of the oil pollution in oceans come from natural seepage from the ground and the oil that drips from automobiles that washes into the water system.